Healthcare workers need to take caution in what they post to personal social media accounts, a peak body for Jewish medical practitioners has warned.
Senior members of the Australasian Jewish Medical Federation have provided a royal commission into anti-Semitism with examples of multiple incidents in which people felt unsafe or doctors were rejected by patients because of their cultural identity.
Federation president Jack Green said the organisation “hardly ever” received reports of anti-Semitism before the turning point of Hamas’ October 7, 2023 attack on Israel.
About 1200 people were killed in the assault, while an estimated 72,000 Palestinians have been killed in Israel’s subsequent bombardments of Gaza.
“There was increased politicisation in the health sector, there were a lot of social media postings,” Dr Green said of the shift.
“There were a lot of increasingly distressed Jewish medical practitioners and they started contacting us.”
Doctors became afraid to display symbols indicating their Jewish identity and, in one instance, an Israeli-Australian patient experienced significant distress seeing “overt political symbols” in a Northern Territory hospital, Dr Green said.
“(It) raised immediate concerns about whether they would receive impartial and equitable care,” he said.
“Her concerns were not acknowledged and this left the patient feeling excluded and unsafe in the doctor’s care.”
Federation member Adam Gordon said the healthcare system must consider the power imbalance at play during interactions with patients.
Some had been left questioning if they would be safe at a given hospital.
“They’re under an anaesthetic and they’re worried about what’s going to happen to them,” Dr Gordon said.
The personal social media activity of medical professionals was highlighted as particularly damaging to trust in healthcare.
Dr Gordon said he was not pushing to regulate private belief or prevent legitimate advocacy.
“But there always needs to be consideration with what’s being posted and the risk to the patient,” he said.
A hypothetical example of Australian doctors working in Gaza and sharing their experiences online was offered by commissioner Virginia Bell.
Dr Gordon said that didn’t raise concerns or fall into offensive territory.
“Australians work in conflict zones all over the world and that’s a good thing,” he said.
“But if you take that experience and you post it online as a doctor and you connect that with false, misleading information … to push your political view, now that might cross a line.”
The federation president referred to an example where an individual was pulled up for causing offence by comparing the conflict in Gaza with the Holocaust.
“That individual obtained a greater appreciation of the context and understood that I was not trying to influence their political views,” Dr Green said.
An incident involving two nurses in Sydney allegedly threatening to refuse care to Jewish patients was also flagged by witnesses.
Representatives from the local health district are expected to give evidence about the incident before the end of hearings on Wednesday.
The national body responsible for healthcare standards will also appear on Wednesday as part of to consider efforts to prevent or address anti-Semitism and other forms of racism across the sector.
The royal commission was called in January after 15 people were killed and dozens more injured when two gunmen opened fire at a Hanukkah event at Sydney’s Bondi Beach on December 14.
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